Fighting What Can't Be Fought
by Sophia Lele
Summary: "The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies." Severus never questioned his loyalty to the Dark Lord until he heard those words. His life and his loyalties changed forever as he learned of what was to become of Lily's child. Without the power to stop Voldemort, Severus Snape had to do anything and everything to keep Lily safe.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

**A/N So just to let you know, this is another Sophia Lele and Bailey Jackson collaboration story so we hope you like it! Its a much different story than Slytherpuff and definitely much darker but we are excited so we hope you like it! :) Reviews help us write faster!**

Right before dusk as the sun was slowly setting, a man appeared out of nowhere with a quiet pop. In front of him was a grand mansion with a gate in front of the walkway toward the elegant door. The man set off at a brisk pace towards the house, but did not stop at the gate; he simply raised his left arm and walked right through. He rapped the door three times and a pale man with long, blonde hair opened it and welcomed him inside.

"Good evening, Severus." Said the pale man.

Severus responded with a respectful nod of his head.

Lucius shut the door and led Severus toward a striking dining room where several people were already sitting. No one talked, but simply sat there as though waiting for something to begin. At the head of the table was a man who looked as though he might have once been handsome, but now had a rather waxy appearance that was the slightest bit unpleasant to look at for too long.

The man at the head of the table looked up when the two men entered and spoke in a high voice that wasn't a pleasant noise to the ear.

"Ah, Severus, I'm so glad you have joined us. Please, sit," he said while gesturing to a seat two spots away from him on the right. Lucius sat in between Severus and the waxy man. A woman, who had a sort of dark beauty about her sat on the mans left.

"My Lord, its always an honor," breathed the woman, practically fainting from pleasure. It was no secret to anyone at the table that Bellatrix Lestrange had a very strong love, or even obsession with the Dark Lord.

"Silence," he hissed and his voice rang eerily throughout the cold room, making more than one person shiver. Nobody spoke a word as they waited for their master to continue. "Now," he continued, "as you all know, the Order of The Phoenix is recruiting new members in their attempt to overthrow me. I'm pleased to report that Marlene McKinnon, a member of that society has been killed along with the rest of her blood traitor family. Travors," He motioned to a man father down the table, "Well done." People around the table nodded in approvement.

"However we must not congratulate each other to heartily. The Order of the Phoenix is still at large and until we successfully infiltrate them, they, and their leader Dumbledore, will continue to do everything in their power to prevent us from cleansing the wizarding world of all impurities." A red gleam appeared in Voldemort's eyes as he thought this. No one in the room dared to make a noise, they all knew the Dark Lords hatred for Dumbledore and did not wish to be noticed in his brief spell of anger.

"Severus," Voldemort addressed Snape, "I have decided to give you the task of attempting to discover what Dumbledore is planning against me. I wish you to follow him closely but undetected, as it would not do well for him to know our plans. I would also like you to apply for a job at Hogwarts where he is now headmaster. It would be very resourceful to have a spy very close to Dumbledore at all times."

"Of course, my Lord." Severus replied to his masters summons.

"Now, Regulus," Voldemort called down to a young, scared looking man at the far end of the table with dark hair, "I have an important job for you. I believe your family owns a house elf, do they not?"

"They do, I-I mean we do, my Lord." Regulus stuttered.

"I will need to use him for an important task. I wish you to go home after our meeting and command it to come here where he will embark on a journey with me. Do not disappoint me."

"A-anything, my Lord." Regulus replied.

"Bellatrix," Voldemort turned towards her, "I wish you to-" The meeting continued with various of his faithful followers receiving orders from their master. When it ended, they all got up except Bellatrix and Lucius and left fairly quickly without much talking.

Normally after the Dark Lord summoned the Death Eaters to Malfoy Manor, Severus would find the fastest way to get out of there and back to his private life at Spinners End. But today felt different. Obviously he would do just as the Dark Lord had ordered of him, but something felt different about this task then the others he had performed. There was no doubt in his mind that he was loyal to his master, but something felt off about spying his old teacher who was a part of his life for so many years. He never had any particular issues with Dumbledore while he was in school, though most of the other Slytherins had assumed he hated him. Severus sighed in the warm summer air to try and clear his mind. What he needed was a drink.

Without another thought, Severus apparated to Diagon Alley. When his feet hit the ground, he looked around to see if anyone had noticed his arrival. He knew it was too early for the school children to be coming for their Hogwarts things and too late for most people to be out, but he still had to make sure. Being a Death Eater did that to you. The lights on the street casted shadows onto his face as he entered into the Leaky Caldron. Only three other people occupied the bar besides the barman, Tom. That was fine by him.

Severus sat down at the bar and when Tom trudged over to him, he ordered a firewhiskey. The first sip burned on his throat, but he didn't complain. Moments after the burn, a dullness started to seep into his head. This wasn't the first time he had come to dull his mind with a drink. As a matter of fact, he was more of a regular with how often the Dark Lord had been calling to them lately.

As he finished his third drink, the quiet chatter in the corner of the room faded away as the others in the bar made their way out. Within moments, Severus was alone with Tom.

"I think its time that you started to leave," Tom said quietly and Severus sighed, standing up and nodding solemnly at him. Walking out of the bar was a little bit harder than it was coming in, but eventually he was back outside. He knew he should apparate home, but he didn't. Instead he leaned against the side of the building, his mind clouded. How long he stood there, he didn't know, but when he finally became tired enough to force himself home, he walked a few steps into the street. But just before he could apparate, he heard a noise coming from behind him. Laughter.

He knew the laughter sounded familiar, but he couldn't place it with his muddled thoughts. It wasn't until he turned to leave that he saw the flash of red hair and knew who it was.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**A/N We will be trying to post a new chapter once a week, probably on Mondays, just as a heads up. We always love reviews to know what you think so far too :)**

**Also, we own no part of Harry Potter, that all belongs to the amazing J.K Rowling. We love her.**

* * *

_"There you go," James said to him, "you're lucky Evans was here, Snivellus-"_

_"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!" He retorted, instantly regretting his remark as he saw Lily blink at him, surprised for a minute before her expression turned stone cold._

_"Fine," She said coolly, "I won't bother in the future. And I'd wash your pants if I was you, Snivellus."_

_"Apologize to Evans!" James roared at him, wand pointed threateningly. He almost wished James would hex him for a moment. Lily Evans, his best friend, his true love, now hated him. There was nothing left for him to do._

Snape woke with a start and stared at the blank ceiling as his dream slowly floated from his mind. His head was pounding from drinking too much last night and the feeling of regret became as fresh as it was when he had first uttered the unforgivable word; Mudblood. His heart was heavy as he mechanically rolled out of bed and staggered out of bed. He tromped out to his kitchen for breakfast with vague thoughts of whipping together a potion for his head.

Ever since he had been out of Hogwarts, he had lived in Spinners End. He had lived there with his neglecting parents who constantly fought until they both died, leaving him alone in a house filled with nothing but horrible memories from a subpar childhood. Having little money however, he was forced to remain in his old house and try to ignore the unpleasant thoughts that crept toward him in every room. He had, though, stayed in his old room rather than move into the master to suppress the worst of his home memories like his father's abusiveness towards his mother and the screams they had procured.

Lost in his thoughts, Severus was barely aware of his hands producing the headache cure he knew by heart by the numerous times he had to make it. As soon as it was done, he drank a serving and immediately felt the soothing effects of the cure and felt marginally relieved as the pounding slowly subsided. With his mind newly cleared and focused, the events of last night came spinning back to him, including the meeting with the Dark Lord in which he had been assigned a specific and important task. Reckoning he had better begin tracking Dumbledore sooner rather than later he immediately set off towards his room to change into his robes and begin contemplating where Dumbledore could possibly be.

Not Hogwarts, he decided. It was too early for him to already be at his school, even if he was headmaster instead of just the transfiguration teacher. Perhaps he would be out in Hogsmeade, visiting one of the numerous pubs, bars, and shops. It was a town famous for its various attractions and was very inviting to the common wizard. Unable to fathom another location for the Headmasters possible location, Severus set off at once and apparated to to the popular wizarding town.

The town, which was brimming with people, was not the ideal place for someone to be when they were trying not to be seen. Severus kept his head down as he made his way out of the middle of the street. It wasn't exactly a secret that he was into dark magic, and for that people stayed away from him. He didn't need anyone telling the Aurors that he was a Death Eater.

It didn't take long for him to reach the end of the street where the Hog's Head Inn sat, dingy as ever. He opened the doors softly and walked in, slipping in the corner of the entrance. Dumbledore sat at the bar with a butterbeer in hand, completely oblivious to Severus' arrival. Only two other people occupied the bar, and one was coughing up something he couldn't see, but was quite sure he didn't want to see.

As Severus stood there, he felt odd in a way he had never felt before when tracking someone for the Dark Lord. But something about Dumbledore was different. Nothing about him personally made it hard for Severus, it was something more. Albus Dumbledore had been the transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts when he was still young enough to be a student there. Back then, Hogwarts hadn't just been a school to him, it had been a home away from home. More importantly, it gave him a complete environment away from all the fighting and hardships he had to endure as a child, and that he was eternally grateful for.

Sitting a safe distance away from his old teacher at the bar, Severus ordered a drink; a flask of pumpkin juice, rather than an alcoholic drink given the time of day and last nights endeavors, as he had no desire to repeat his horrendous hangover from this morning. Minding he kept his face hidden while continuing to watch the old man, Severus began to let his mind wander a bit more freely than he possibly should have done, given the relevance of his assignment.

His mind wandered back to last night, back to the possibility of that laugh and that hair belonging to none other than Lily. Lily Evans, as he still thought of her, though he had heard that she had married Potter. The thought of this repulsed him however, as did the thought of Potter himself. He had also heard that she had given birth to a son sometime in the middle of last years summer. He couldn't, or wouldn't, depending on a person's mindset, however, count these as facts, seeing as he had scarcely talked to Lily since they had both left Hogwarts four years previously.

He longed to see her again though, to see if she was the same as she had always been, her timelessness always awing Severus. If he could just talk to her again, perhaps they could renew their long lost friendship. Of course, there was the problematic situation of him being a Death Eater, something Lily had always despised. This made sense though, seeing as she was a muggle-born witch.

The scratching of a chair on floor re-awakened Severus from his reverie as Dumbledore pushed out his bar stool and stood up. For a moment it seemed as though he had spotted, and recognized, Severus, but the man just continued out the door and Severus contemplated the possibility that he was just paranoid of the man's omniscient legacy. Deciding it seemed as though Dumbledore was doing nothing worth noting today, Severus decided to end his pursuit and, once the old man had left the bar, followed suit and stood up to leave. Once he was at the edge of the busy town once more, he turned on the spot to return to his home.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

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* * *

About a week had past since the Dark Lord had given Severus his tasks and he had little to report. He followed Dumbledore consistently that whole week but had seen nothing too suspicious. In fact, Severus was starting to worry about the lack of information he had to provide for his Master. All of the Death Eaters knew that no information meant no mercy.

The day before Severus and the other Death Eaters we due back at Malfoy Manor for the week's meeting, Severus opened his window to let in an owl who had rapped its beak on the glass to be let it. The bird fluttered into the small, dark house and held its leg out for Severus to untie that morning's Daily Prophet. After doing so, he payed the owl a Knut for the paper who wooted thankfully and took flight once more out the window.

Severus had begun questioning whether he should even continue receiving the prophet. Not much of it was ever news to him anyways, seeing as his organization was the cause of most of the news these days. He leafed through the paper as usual, however, and came across an article about the death of Marlene McKinnon and her family.

**Mckinnon Family Found Dead**

_Marlene McKinnon, a blonde woman who was part of the_

_anti-He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named movement was found_

_dead late last night in her home, along with the rest of her_

_family. Due to the fact that the Dark Mark was found over_

_this disturbing scene it seems that she was killed by He-Who-_

_Must-Not-Be-Named's followers who have made themselves_

_known as the Death Eaters._

The article continued on a little more but Severus stopped reading it; he had lost interest. He continued perusing the paper and came across an advertisement that highly interested him. He let himself slightly sigh in relief as his eyes eagerly devoured the information on the page.

**Hogwarts Professors Needed**

_Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry is in need_

_of three new additions to their staff. If you meet the qualif-_

_ications and would like to work as a Potions, Divination, or_

_Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, please apply by_

_meeting with the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore._

Severus read through the article a few times. This was exactly what the Dark Lord wanted him to do. If he was to get the position, he would have constant information on Dumbledore and probably more on the Order of the Phoenix. He put the post down, making a mental note to apply as soon as possible. Until then, he would continue to keep a close eye on the headmaster. Deciding to start his search with the Leaky Cauldron he apparated on the spot and arrived on the Muggle street by the entrance. He went unnoticed by the numerous shopping Muggles as he entered the pub they couldn't see.

As usual, the building was occupied by a few groups of people, all talking amongst themselves. Severus walked towards a table in back and sat down. Within a few moments, someone came to get his order and he was sitting, pumpkin juice in hand, waiting for Dumbledore to come. As he sipped the juice, he began to look around him at the people residing in the pub. He didn't recognize majority of them, but towards another corner he saw whom he believed were Frank and Alice Longbottom, along with their son. He had not heard they had a son and therefore did not know the boys name. It did not trouble him much at all.

He heard the door open again and turned to see who had entered. When he saw who it was he began to choke on the drink he had taken moments before and quickly turned away so as not to be noticed. The person who had walked into the Leaky Cauldron was none other than Lily Evans, in the flesh. She was accompanied by James and her son, Harry. Together the three of them made their way over to where the Longbottoms were motioning for them to join them.

Lily Evans. Severus' mind seemed to have gone blank. Last week he had wanted nothing less than for her to appear in his presence but now that she had Severus had began to panic. His first instinct was to discreetly leave the bar, unnoticed by her so as to not have to talk to her. But this seemed to cowardly. And why should he run from her? He did want to talk to her, didn't he? He was suddenly very unsure. Risking another look at her, he saw that she had not noticed him at all and while his mind was suddenly buzzing with fear and possibility hers was probably concerned about nothing but what to order!

At first this angered Severus, until he realized he was supposed to be hiding in the first place and it would not do well to be seen by a member of the Order of the Phoenix, as he was supposed to be watching her organization's leader. Not until then had it really struck Severus how much she and him had drifted in different directions. So much so that it seemed like an uncrossable fissure had appeared between the two ex-friends.

He had joined the Death Eaters, the one thing Lily Evans truly despised. And she had joined the Order. And they were now enemies in a war. It was possible that she did not know he had joined the Death Eaters, but this was slim chance. Sure, they hadn't really talked since before they joined but he had always made it pretty clear which direction he was heading.

Despite all of this, Severus sincerely missed being friends with Lily. They did not have a lot in common, something that was always pointed out by Lily's other friends as they questioned and judged the friendship, but they were each others first friends at Hogwarts. And that, Severus was sure, had to be a bond that never truly died. Then again, she had married his worst enemy. Potter.

She was far too good for him he decided. Potter was arrogant, lazy and cruel, several qualities Severus was disgusted by. Then again, he had joined the Death Eaters and probably was a worse of a man to Lily. Feeling extremely saddened, Severus continued to drink his pumpkin juice. Once he had finished that, he ordered a small firewhiskey.

About half an hour later, Severus had finished that and one more, his internally thoughts continuing on the entire time. He was about to go talk to Lily, about to stand up, when she stood up instead and grabbed her jacket. This was it, either he talked to her now or never. But Severus couldn't move as he watched he put on her son's jacket as well, wave to her friends, and leave the pub with Potter. He watched through the dingy window as she and her family walked away without a backwards glance. Feeling defeated for almost no reason, Severus finished his drink, paid, and left the pub as well.

As he walked out the door, he was surprised to see Dumbledore sitting at the bar. Severus was completely unsure when he had entered, seeing as he was so wrapped up in his thoughts. Cursing himself, he left quickly. At least he had the job application news for his master.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

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* * *

Severus woke up the next morning with a feeling of dread heavy inside him. Today the Death Eaters had a meeting so they could show their master what they had found and he was worried. Sure he had the job to tell the Dark Lord, but Severus never knew how much he expected of him. The past few meetings the Dark Lord had shown favor to him, so all he could do was hope what he had was enough.

Mechanically, Severus rolled out of bed and got dressed for the day. He had slept in past noon knowing that he would be having a long night. The Dark Lord's meetings usually started in the late afternoon and ended when he finished getting information out of everyone, which could take all night. When he didn't get the answers he wanted, he made sure they knew how mad he was.

Having two hours until he was to be in the meeting and one and a half until he was to start traveling, Severus debated how to best use his time. He went into his small, dank kitchen and prepared a brunch of pumpkin juice and toast while thinking over all the information he had acquired over the past week. His compilation on Dumbledore was, admittedly, small and seemingly made up of pointless details to create a hazy overview picture of the man, but surely his lead for a job at Hogwarts would alleviate some of the Dark Lord's anger and frustration. A job at Hogwarts would put Severus right under the man' s crooked nose for a whole school year.

Severus cleaned up his breakfast, putting his dishes in the pile to be washed. They could be done with a flick of his wand but he did not care about the mess or the kitchen enough to bother with it. He moved on into the sitting room and pulled a book at random off the darkly stained bookshelf. He had been flipping through it for over a minute before he realized it was his old potions book, one of the few things he had kept after completing his 7th year. Most of his second hand belongs had gone to the trash, he did not wish to ever see them again because of the horrid memories from school he associated with them, but he had kept his potions book partly because it could be useful for day to day use and partly because it had been his best class, something he had always excelled at over Potter.

Severus checked the time again and quickly put the old book away. He grabbed his black traveling cloak to disguise his Death Eater robes and set off at a brisk pace to a muggle-free area to which he could disapparate from. It would not due for him to be late.

* * *

Agonizing screams rolled off the walls and into Severus' ears. Stone-faced, he watched as Rastaban Lestrange fell to the ground in a pain only the Cruciatus Curse could cause.

"You mean to tell me you found_ nothing_ on the Longbottoms in the entire week I gave you?" Voldemort hissed, his eyes ignited with fury. Rastaban raised his hand as if he meant to interject.

"My Lord I-"

"_Crucio_!"

As Rastaban fought the pain, Severus darted his eyes around the room. Only the newer Death Eaters seemed to be flinching at the sight of one of their own on the ground. The rest-like Severus-knew that this happened quite often. The Dark Lord raised his wand once more when Severus remembered something.

"My Lord?" Without lowering his wand, Voldemort turned and looked towards the voice.

"Severus?"

"I saw the Longbottoms yesterday while I was waiting for Albus Dumbledore in Leaky Cauldron. They and the Po- some other members of the order were meeting together." Severus suddenly realized what he did.

"The Longbottoms were with whom, Severus?" He couldn't say the Potters. If he did, his master would surely start a search against them.

"The Prewett brothers my Lord." He quickly continued. "The Longbottoms had brought along their son so the meeting between them and the Prewetts must not have been anything Order related. I wasn't completely listening as I was watching for Albus, but what I did manage to hear was just small talk." Voldemort lowered his wand and Severus let out the breath he realized he had been holding in.

"Very good, Severus. Rastaban, back in your seat."

"Thank you my Lord." Everyone waited as he got himself up off the ground and pulled himself into his seat.  
"Now Severus," The Dark Lord said, turning to face him once again. "What did you find on Albus Dumbledore?"

"Unfortunately, My Lord, Albus either knows he's being followed or is just antisocial. Every day he goes to the Leaky Cauldron and orders something to drink and then leaves once it closes." Severus could tell the Dark Lord was about to say something about his lack of information. He needed to hurry up. "However, Albus is currently the headmaster at Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I found out that he is in need of teachers this school year and I am in the process of applying. That way, I can always gain insight to him and other Order members."

Voldemort was silent for a moment and Severus held his breath until his master began to speak again.

"And what will happen if he knows your position as one of my loyal followers? Are you prepared to convince him otherwise?" Severus could feel everyone's eyes on him as they waited for his answer.

"I'm prepared."

* * *

The cool air was very much welcomed by Severus as he stepped out of Malfoy Manor once more. The Dark Lord was not in a good mood and Severus did not desire having to spend any more time than absolutely necessary with him at the moment as the Dark Lord was not entirely pleased with his information. He had expected more, Severus knew it. He would just have to try harder on his attempts on spying on the old man. Perhaps he could follow him with the use of a disillusion charm? That might work…

The meeting had been a relatively short one today so Severus decided he had the time and want for a drink from the Leaky Cauldron, but promised himself he would not get drunk tonight. He had been drinking far too much lately. He disapparated to the pub and sat down at the bar. He ordered a butterbeer, nothing to strong, and looked around him at the various people. None of them looked extremely happy, understandable of course. The public was terrified of the Dark Lord and probably for good reason. Severus had begun second guessing his choice to join the Death Eaters lately, but it did not matter. He could not back out now.

Severus finished his butterbeer fairly quickly but did not linger. He got up and walked toward the door to leave. He was about to reach for the door handle when someone opened it from the other side. He stepped back just as they stepped in. And much to his surprise it was -

"Lily." He said. She paused for a moment. Her face turned confused for a moment but then flattened out with no expression.

"Severus."

"How are you?"

"I'm fine, thank you." Her voice had an edge to it and Severus could tell she was not interested whatsoever in talking to him. Rather than dragging on the awkward conversation Severus decided he would end it quickly for her.

"I'm sorry to bother you. I'll let you go you are probably busy and I as well have places to be." Liar he thought to himself, he would be just going back to his house and do nothing, "It was nice to see you again."

"And you." Lily said, relief coloring her tone.

And with that Severus went his way and Lily hers. Wasn't that familiar Severus thought to himself as he turned on the spot and left behind Lily Evans once again.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**A/N Is anyone else already sick of school? I am. I don't know about Bailey but I'm not loving this whole getting up early thing.**

**EcargWillOneDayRuleTheWorld: We feel sorry for Snape too (even though we are the ones putting him through this).**

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* * *

As usual, Severus sat in the corner of Leaky Cauldron as he waited for Dumbledore to do something. He sipped his pumpkin juice and tried not to yawn. His brief talk with Lily last night had left him with some unpleasant memories in his dreams and he had woken up feeling as if he had never gone to sleep. He had already spent most of the day watching Dumbledore and he was finding it harder to stay awake as night began to creep closer.

Suddenly, Dumbledore stood up and began to walk towards the door. Without questioning it, Severus stood up and silently cast the disillusionment charm over himself. Once he knew the spell had taken effect, he hurried to follow the old man.

Unlike any normal wizard, Dumbledore didn't simply disapparate to his next location as soon as he could. Instead he walked at a brisk pace at which Severus found almost hard to keep up with for quite some time. Dumbledore stopped abruptly and Severus sprinted forward, just barely grasping the edge of his cloak before he disapparated. Once they landed on the ground again, Dumbledore began walking once again. Severus followed the man and noticed the wind picking up and when he looked up, he noticed clouds rolling over the horizon. A storm was coming. Dumbledore looked up and once he noticed the clouds began to walk even faster.

By the time they stopped, Severus was cold and wet from the rain. The old man didn't seem to be having that problem and didn't even stop to catch his breath as he walked into the Hog's Head Inn. Severus had to quickly follow him in as a door opening with no one visible doing it would raise some questions.

As he entered into the Hogs Head, he allowed himself a moment to stop and rest. Besides himself and Albus, no one else was in the bar. All the wooden tables sat empty, stubs of candles burning softly providing little light to the room. Even when it was light out, it was almost always dark inside as the windows were so covered in filth it was almost impossible to see outside. Severus' brief moment of break was interrupted as tall, thin man with an impressive beard walked into the room.

"Albus."

"Aberforth."

"She's upstairs."

"Thank you." Before Severus could register who the man was, he was gone and Dumbledore was on the move once again. He walked to a staircase which led into the Inn portion of the Hog's Head and as he climbed the stairs, he disappeared from view.

Severus slowly stepped towards the staircase, cautious of any noise. He didn't know where the other man had come from the first time and didn't want to risk getting caught by him. Deciding it was more suspicious for him to be walking around invisible, he took off his disillusionment charm and walked forward. Once he reached the stairs, he climbed them and kept his eyes and ears open for Albus, the sound of rain humming in his ears. At the top of the stairs, he saw ten different rooms. Deciding to make his way down the hall one door at a time, he approached the first door and leaned in to listen.

Nothing. He moved to the one directly across the hall. A group of high pitched laughs filled his ear once he pressed it to the door and he immediately pulled it away. The next door was harder to listen to as the people inside were whispering.

"Are you sure Frank?"

"Yes. James noticed it as well. He told me he was going to notify Mad Eye as soon as he could. If the Death Eaters really are on our trail, then we must talk to them about keeping Neville safe somehow while we fight. Even if it's us they are after, the Death Eaters would surely hurt him too." There's a slight pause before the woman responds.  
"And Harry." Severus leaned in closer. Those were the voices of Frank and Alice Longbottom. If he didn't get information on Dumbledore, than at least he would have something on the Longbottoms.

"James said he would come by tomorrow so we could discuss what to do." That's when he stopped listening. They were talking about James Potter. If Severus remembered correctly, Harry was the name of his son. He couldn't listen to the talk any longer. If he knew the information, then he would have to fight to keep it from the Dark Lord which is something he wouldn't want to do.

The next door he checked contained nothing as did the one after that. Where did Albus go? Once he reached the sixth door, he heard nothing at first, but then he heard a familiar voice.

"I'm sorry Sybill, but I don't think you are what we're looking for." Severus heard the sound of a chair moving across the floor and then shortly after, footsteps.

"Albus wait! I-" The footsteps stopped.

"Sybill?"

A voice eerie and dark filled Severus' ear. _"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…"_ Suddenly, Severus felt a hand on his shoulder and he was pulled away from the door. The man from earlier stood in front of him, his wand pointed right at Severus.  
"You're not supposed to be here." Severus pulled his own wand, his mind racing.

"Get out. Now. I have no problem killing a Death Eater." Severus looked at the man for a moment, weighing his options. The man pointed his wand more forcefully and Severus darted out of the building.

As soon as he entered the street, he immediately disapparated back to his house. He raced in the door and quickly found a piece of parchment to write down what he had just heard.

"...And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal," Severus said aloud as he wrote, trying to make sense of the words, "but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…" He reread the words he had just written a few more times before he realized what he had just overheard.

Someone had made a prophecy about the Dark Lord.

* * *

"My Lord!" Severus called out as he ran up the steps of Malfoy Manor. "My Lord!"

"Severus," his master said, looking at him with question as he made his way towards his running servant.

"My Lord, I bring news," Severus panted.

"Tell me what you have heard."

"I was following Dumbledore to the Hog's Head and when I listened in on his conversation he talking to someone named Sybill. He was going to leave when she said something that made him stop."

"What did she say?" he asked impatiently.

"She made a prophecy, My Lord. Someone is going to be able to destroy you."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

**A/N So I'm warning you, this isn't the best chapter we've ever written because we've gotten really busy and such but hey, at least it's a chapter. I swear, we put the pro in procrastination :P. At least we have the excuse for being busy this time. Please review!**

**Christine Dalen: And the plot thickens… :P Thanks for the one sentence by the way. I was totally stuck lol. You'll probably have to help me more in the future as well. My brain doesn't work that early in the morning as you know by now. (Thanks for reviewing by the way. Reviews are really what keep us writing and you were the only one who reviewed this chapter.)**

**Summerrogue: Thanks for the follow!**

**Amar 2: Thanks for the follow!**

**RicL96: Thanks for the follow/favorite!**

* * *

The Dark Lord got up from his seat and started pacing the length of the room. The roaring fire, burning bright in the fireplace behind him cast deep shadows upon his face, preventing Severus from seeing him clearly. Since he had first shown up at Malfoy Manor, he had told his master the prophecy six times and which each time, the Dark Lord grew more and more agitated.

"Tell me again," he hissed.

"My Lord, you know it as well as I do now," Severus said softly. Voldemort barely acknowledged him as he continued to walk. Without stopping, he raised his wand and sliced through the air, collapsing the table in his anger. Severus jumped out of his chair to avoid being crushed.

"My Lord!" he exclaimed.

"Tell me AGAIN!"

"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not..." Severus repeated with a rushed tone. Both men fell silent, the sound of the fire popping filling the room.

"Very good, Severus," he whispered. There was a long pause before Severus deemed it okay to talk.

"So, what are you going to do?" he asked cautiously. Voldemort sighed and turned himself so he was facing the fire.

"I'm going to destroy him." He slashed his wand through the air once more and the fire was extinguished. When Severus' eyes adjusted, he looked around, trying to find his master, but he was gone.

* * *

Severus' mind was completely empty. He had not slept all night, as he had been with Voldemort since he had heard the prophecy. Even though he was exhausted, he didn't feel like going home. Without much thought, he thought of a random place and turned on the spot.

Much to his surprise, he landed in the village of Hogsmade, the town where he had spent much time in his later years at Hogwarts. The streets were pretty much empty because the school year didn't start yet. Severus sighed to himself. When he was younger, August was always the longest month of the year. Hogwarts was his home and any time spent away from it was hard. As he continued to think, he started walking down the street until he found himself at the door of Honeyduke's Sweetshop.

He was never able to buy anything from the old sweet shop when he was young, he never had extra pocket money to spend on frivolous things. He felt in his pocket today; however, and found he had some change to spare and decided to find out for himself how good Honeyduke's candy really was. He opened the door and heard the ding of the bell as it opened. Surprised at the number of people, he headed off to a semi-empty corner of the shop where there was an odd variety of sweets meant for vampires and other creatures. He silently wondered to himself what they could possibly taste like when he heard the laugh of a small child.

"See, Harry? Look at all the bright, colorful candy!" Said a woman.

Severus turned on a dime and faced Lily Evans and her son, Harry.

"Lily?" He said before he could stop himself. She turned her head to face him, still perfectly balancing Harry on her hip.

"Oh, hello."

"Is this your son?" he asked, advancing towards them. At the mention of her son, Lily's face broke into a smile, a completely different reaction than the last time Severus had talked to her.

"Yes, this is Harry," she said, turning her head towards the little boy. He had wild black hair and the exact green, almond shaped eyes as his mother. "Say 'hi' to Sev, Harry." Sev. Severus pretty much melted on the spot. Lily hadn't called him that since their Hogwarts days. Harry blushed and turned his head towards his mom.

"Hi," he whispered and Lily laughed, bouncing him higher in her arms.

"Harry's a little shy," she explained and Severus smiled, unsure of what else to do.

"I've never really been in this shop before." He said randomly, reaching in the dark for some conversation.

"Really?"

"Yeah I never really had enough… I never really came down here." Unmistakable understanding floated into her eyes, for she, as Severus knew, understood his past better than anyone else.

"Well, it's Harry's first time too," she said, "I thought he might like to see all the candy"

"How old is he?"

"Turned one at the end of last month." Severus froze for a second, why did that one statement cause him momentary panic?

"He has your eyes."

"Yea, he does." Lily looked down at her watch them back up at Severus. "I'm sorry Sev but I have to go, James and I are meeting up with the Longbottom's for dinner, you remember Frank and Alice right?" Severus nodded and she continued, "Anyways I have to go get ready. It was nice seeing you again."

"And you." Severus said politely.

"Say goodbye to Sev, Harry!" Harry waved and Lily laughed and waved bye as well as she headed out the door. Severus picked up a piece of candy that Harry had been playing with, a Pumpkin Pasty, and played with it in his hand. He was so young, just turned one at the end of July, he had so much life ahead of him.

The end of July. Why hadn't he thought of it before?_ Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies..._ Severus knew that the boys parents were in the order and for all he knew they could had defied his Master three times. He must not think on it though, it would not do well for his Master to discover the boy's birthday, Harry's birthday. Severus would not be the reason the boy who was so young with so much life would be killed.

Severus was getting ahead of himself. He did not know all the facts and he tried to shake off his thoughts as he left the shop and stepped out into the rain. There was no way it was Harry in the prophecy, Severus wouldn't be able to bare it if it was true.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**A/N ****This chapter was originally going to be super long but we decided to cut it in half mostly because with band season starting we didn't have time to write it all. But fear not, young grasshoppers, it is coming next Monday. Enjoy!**

**Christine Dalen: It's nice to know that our story is that powerful. Hearing stuff like that makes us feel like we are actually doing something worthwhile. Oh, and yes I know where to find you. (If anyone doesn't know me that sounds really creepy lol.)**

**Amar 2: Thanks :). And don't worry, there is always something new coming.**

**MaryLeboneFirst: Thanks for the favorite! :D**

* * *

Two weeks later, Severus woke to the pain of the Dark Mark burning hot on his arm. Knowing he would be punished for being late, he got up off his bed, threw on some clean robes he had left on the floor, and disapparated knowing that his Dark Mark would take him to his master.

Much to his surprise, he landed not inside Malfoy Manor, but somewhere where the slight summer breeze could reach him. When he looked around, he found himself in a heavily forested area. In the seconds after he landed, Avery, Rastaban, and Bellatrix also appeared.

"Where's the Dark Lord?" Bellatrix asked, turning her head in what seemed to be a frantic search.

"He's here Bellatrix, don't get all worked up," Severus commented and she turned towards him, her wand raised. Just as he was about to bring up his in defense, a high pitched voice rang in all their ears.

"No, Bellatrix." Voldemort stepped out from behind a large tree with long, droopy branches covered in leaves.

"My Lord?"

"Severus is the reason we are all here tonight." Severus suddenly felt dozens of eyes on him. "Would you please come by me?"

"Of course, my Lord." Everyone watched as he made his way towards his master and ever after he had stopped next to him. For a moment, the only sound was the leaves rustling high in the trees. It seemed as if everyone was holding their breath, waiting for something to happen.

"There has been a new twist to the game," Voldemort started, his followers hanging onto his every words. "While following Albus Dumbledore, Severus overheard a prophecy."

"What kind of prophecy, my Lord?" Rastaban asked, voicing the question that had been on everyone's mind. Voldemort turned to his left and nodded.

"Severus?"

"Someone is coming to destroy our master." A loud gasp from Bellatrix rang through the air and the Death Eaters shared looks of shock and fury.

"We must destroy them!" Lucius Malfoy exclaimed and many echoed him. A slight smirk appeared at the edge of the Dark Lord's mouth.

"That is the plan." The crowd became quiet again, waiting for more. Voldemort's snake eyes grazed over each of his followers before he spoke again.

"The prophecy speaks of a boy, born at the end of July, who will have power I know not," Utter silence sat, as if even the woods were listening. Almost all the Death Eaters could feel chills running down their spine as they waited for him to continue. "After searching, my sources have showed me that two boys have the qualifications." Severus' heart started to beat faster. It couldn't be her son. "Neville Longbottom," It couldn't be her son. "and Harry Potter."

No.

"Let's kill them both, my Lord!" Bellatrix yelled, fury in her eyes. "Let no one question your authority!" Voldemort held up his hand to prevent further outbreaks.

"That won't be necessary. I know whom the prophecy speaks of."

"Who, my Lord?" Severus whispered, not even caring that he wasn't supposed to be talking.

"Harry Potter, son of James and Lily Potter." Anger and excitement flooded into all the Death Eaters eyes. Severus, though, stood still with terror. "No one must kill him but me," Voldemort continued, oblivious to the reactions, "but I need you all find the Potters and bring Harry Potter," he paused and Severus held his breath, "to his death."

In the next few minutes, all of the Death Eaters disapparated, their minds fresh with their task. Severus, however, couldn't leave.

"My Lord?" he asked, approaching the Dark Lord once again.

"Yes?"

"My Lord, I'm not questioning your judgement, but must it be the Potter's son? The Longbottom boy carries the same qualities."

"Not all the same," Voldemort countered. Severus looked at him, confused. "Neville Longbottom is a pureblood. Harry, is a halfblood."

"But why a halfblood? Wouldn't the pure blooded boy be stronger with the pure magical core?" Even though he didn't believe that, he was desperate for a way out.

"No, Severus. I'm a halfblood, so it's only fitting that a halfblood would rise to try and destroy me." When he didn't respond, Voldemort continued. "Is there some reason you don't want Harry to be the one I kill?"

"Lily." Understanding washed into his master's eyes.

"Oh, yes, the Evans' girl. The mudblood. You had a thing for her back when you were still in school, didn't you?" Severus' blood boiled at the casual insults thrown at her.

"Please don't hurt her, I'm begging you!" Severus pleaded, on the verge of hysteria now. Voldemort sighed and turned away from Severus.  
"There can be no other way." Severus' breath caught in his throat. "Harry Potter must die." He stood in utter shock as he watched Voldemort walk away. No. This couldn't be happening. He had to do something, he had to tell someone, he_ had_ to help.

Lily. He had to tell her, and fast.

Without a second thought, he disapparated to Hogsmade. He sprinted down the street, not even caring about the looks he was getting. "Lily!" he screamed. "Lily!" Another minute of frantic search showed she was nowhere in the town so he disapparated to the Hog's Head. Nothing. "God damnit, Lily!" he whispered and disapparated straight to the Leaky Cauldron.

He entered the pub and frantically searched for a glimpse of red hair among the crowded bar. His heart leapt for a second until he realized the red haired woman was not Lily and was instead that Margret Weasley, or was it Molly? He did not dwell long on the details if the woman who was not Lily.

Severus then turned to the tables and continued his search. He then spotted her, sitting in a way back corner. He sighed in relief and thanked his lucky stars he had found her. At that moment however she stood up and began briskly walking to and out the door. Severus followed her at a half run just trying to keep up.

"Lily!" He shouted but the wind was strong and prevented his cry from entering her ears, "Lily!" He tried again and she stopped and turned around.

"Sev?" She asked, slightly confused.

"Lily, we need to talk." His voice sounded serious and grave and he could see her becoming hesitant at the encounter.

"What's going on Sev?" She asked, concerned.

"I don't know where to start." Severus said, how was he supposed to explain how much danger she was in?

"I don't have a lot of time I have to get back to Harry."

"He's in trouble!"

"What? What do you mean?"

"I mean that he is in trouble and so are you I tried pleading with him I did but he refused to spare you-"

"Him? Who is 'him', Sev? What the hell is going on?" She was becoming angry about her confusion and his lack of specifics. Her arms were crossed tight around her body and her hair was being blown every which way like fire and her eyes were ignited with flame and fury. Severus decided to just come out and say it.

"The Dark Lord, Lily. He is after your son."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**A/N We are so sorry this chapter came out a little bit late! Both of our schools had major stuff going on this week/weekend and I (Sophia) had band so this week was kind of crazy. Also- I keep forgetting to add this but we don't own any part of the Harry Potter story, that all belongs to the amazing J.K Rowling.**

**Amar 2: You're right, she didn't talk to him after he called her a Mudblood, but this story is pretty much a "what if" story. Like, what if things went differently than what actually happened?**

**Christine Dalen: Lol it's nice to know its a "page turner" when you can't even turn the page. :P**

**Carrie: Lol I love you. Your reviews make me laugh so hard. Reading your reviews is why we continue to write. Just for you girl.**

**Sarapha: Thanks for that super long message you sent us! It was amazing to hear all those things. Seriously, thank you do much.**

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**kaityjo27: Thanks for the follow!**

* * *

Severus' words echoed through the air as the wind continued to pick up.

"What?" Severus didn't respond, trying to prolong what he knew he had to tell her. "I don't understand. What does You-Know-Who want with my son?"

"There has been a prophecy, Lily. Someone is coming to destroy the Dark Lord and he thinks it's your son. He will stop at nothing to kill him." Fear rushed into her eyes and he watched her strong stance crumble. "I tried Lily, I really did. I begged him to let you live, I will try to keep you alive." Suddenly her fists clenched and her green eyes pierced into his.

"How dare you." Wait, what? Severus turned to look at her better, confused.

"I don't understand."

"You _bastard_!" She unfolded her arms and pushed her hands on his chest. making him stumble backwards.

"Lily!" Forgetting she even had a wand, she shoved him to the ground, the wind flipping her hair, giving the illusion that her head was on fire. "Lily, stop!" For a brief moment, she did. Severus took that moment to get himself up. Lily looked at him and suddenly found herself laughing.

"What?"

"You never changed. You are still the same, selfish coward you were at Hogwarts." Severus' fists clenched.

"I...am _not_ a coward," he said slowly, his voice shaking. Lily shook her head at him.

"Yes, Severus, you are." When he didn't respond, she sighed and folded her arms once again. "I have a son, Severus, and a husband whom I love more than the world. You are not going to protect me and leave them to die," Severus felt his heart drop. She didn't care.

"But you don't understand!" he exclaimed, frantic for her acceptance. "He will kill you! He will stop at nothing to kill Harry and if you are in his way then he's one Avada Kedavra away from your death!"

"Then let him do it," she replied, her voice monotone. Without waiting for a response, she turned away from him. "You can go now."  
"But Lily-"  
"Go!" Severus backed up, shaking his head. He had to fix this somehow, he would not let her die. His mind searched for any answer. Who could protect her? Who was the Dark Lord afraid of?

Dumbledore.

Severus apparated immediately back to his house. Once he arrived he grabbed a piece of paper and a quill and frantically scrawled a message to Dumbledore.

_Albus,_

_I wish to speak with you about something urgent. Please respond right away._

_Severus Snape_

He then tied the message unto his owl and sent it. He tried sitting while waiting but became far too anxious and began pacing. Half an hour passed, then an hour, then an hour and a half. Darkness had begun to fall and Severus continued his pacing and staring out the window for an owl. Two hours after the message was sent found Severus sitting at his table looking rather pale and anxious but not really registering his surrounding, deep in thought.

Because of this Severus did not see the dark shape flying toward his window, a spec in the darkness. The owl rapped at the window and Severus jumped up and quickly received the owl and letter.

_Severus,_

_Meet me on the hilltop outside Hogsmead Village at 10:00 tonight to convey your message._

_Albus Dumbledore_

Severus checked the clock and saw that it was ten minutes till ten. He apparated again and appeared on top of the hilltop just seconds later. Driven with extreme panic Severus resumed his pacing. He then began to turn on the spot instead, wand out, to make sure Dumbledore would not attack him without his notice.

Out of nowhere a blinding jet of white light cause Severus to fall to his knees as he felt his wand fly out if his hands.

"Don't kill me!" He shouted out.

"That was not my intention." Dumbledore replied and Severus was relieved for that as well as the fact that he had come, Lily would be safe.

"Well, Severus? What message does Lord Voldemort have for me?"

"No-no message-I'm here on my own account!" He began to wring his hands with worry, he had not thought about what he was to say to Dumbledore, "I-I come with a warning-no, a request-please-"

"What request could a Death Eater make of me?"

"The- the prophecy... The prediction... Trelawney..."

"Ah, yes, how much if that did you relay to Voldemort?"

"Everything- everything I heard! That is why- it is the reason- he thinks it means Lily Evans!"

"The prophecy did not speak of a woman, it spoke of a boy born at the end of July-"

"You know what I mean! He thinks it means her son, he is going to hunt her down- kill them all-"

"If she means so much to you, surely Lord Voldemort will spare her? Could you not ask for mercy for the mother, in exchange for the son?"

"I have- I have asked him-"

"You disgust me." His reaction was so similar to Lily's but Snape could not see what he had done wrong with trying to save her, to spare her life.

"You do not care, then," Dumbledore continued, "About the deaths of her husband and child? They can die, as long as you have what you want?"

Snape looked up at the wise, wrinkled face of Dumbledore and finally understood. He was selfish. He was a coward. How could he stand for two deaths, one a child's, as long as he was safe and had what he wanted. He became disgusted with himself. Lily was right, she was always right about who he really was. But in that moment, he made a choice. A choice to change.

"Hide them all, then. Keep her-them- safe. Please." Severus pleaded.

"And what will you give me in return, Severus?"

"In-in return?" What did he have? But he was a desperate man, "Anything." He replied.

And from that moment, a new man, a better man, was born. To former foes looked each other in the eye and understood each other. Dumbledore helped Severus up from where he was still kneeling on the ground and returned his wand.

"Thank you, Albus." Severus said, but not just about the wand.

"Stay with Voldemort, that will be crucial for their protection."

And with that Dumbledore apparated from the hilltop.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**A/N We're taking a chapter to go away from Snape's POV so we can see what's going on in the rest of the wizarding world. We hope you enjoy :).**

**Amar 2: Snape really did have an awful life and I can see why you don't like Dumbledore. I used to like him, but the more I think about it, I agree with you. He didn't even take Snape's safety or mental health into account.**

**Professor Radar: I could care less about what happens to James too. That sounds bad, but I've always hated him. Actually Bailey and I both have. As for Dumbledore, I can see where you are coming from. I agree with you on most of it, but I don't think he was the same as Voldemort. Sure, they used some of the same things, but Voldemort was completely inhumane about it. He didn't care what happened to anyone and wanted a good majority of the world dead. I don't think Dumbledore was that bad. He was bad in his own way though.**

**Christine Dalen: I feel bad for Snape too bro. His life really sucks.**

**Bailey Jackson: Thanks for the follow/favorite bro. You did it because you obviously don't know what the chapters say until Monday :P.**

**Jane Doho: Snape really does have an awful life. I promise it will get better for him eventually-we like him to much to have him suffer for the rest of his life.**

**elvelover: Thanks for the favorite!**

**JaneDoh0: Thanks for the favorite!**

* * *

The next afternoon the sun shone on an old, worn house. With a pop a man with dark, wild black hair and glasses appeared along with a woman who had long red hair. They proceeded forward to the house where an old man greeted them and invited them inside.

"Lily, James, do come in." Said the man.

"Why did you call such an urgent meeting Albus?" James asked while Lily, out of his view, suddenly looked suspicious and uncomfortable. Her actions were not missed by the old man. He pretended not to notice however.

"We will discuss it once everyone arrives, we are still waiting for Remus and the Longbottoms."

All three walked inside and the door shut behind them. The two men made their way towards the brightly lit living room, talking animatedly, probably about Quidditch or some other thing. Lily trailed behind, thinking about why she was here. Albus probably knew about the prophecy and You-Know-Who, he always knew what was going on before anyone else did. She felt something twitch inside her. If he knew, then why wasn't he already doing something? Her thoughts became interrupted as she felt arms wrap around her waist. She turned her head to face the man, her husband's best friend-Sirius Black.

"There's my favorite red head." he said as he rocked her back and forth. Lily laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Careful Padfoot, my husbands right there." Sirius released her and she turned to face him.

"Don't worry, I could never take you away from Prongs, he's far too attractive." Lily laughed again and the two of them walked to join James and the rest of the people.

The well decorated living room provided a comfortable space for the large group congregated inside the house. Lily watched as the many people walked around and chatted, some laughing and some talking quietly.

"Lily!" Lily turned her head to see one of her best friends- Alice Longbottom- walk in. Both women smiled at each other and Alice walked over towards Lily. "How have you been?" she asked.

"I've been okay, how about you? How are Frank and Neville?" Alice laughed.

"Neville is growing by the second and who knows how Frank is doing, he has his mind frozen on Quidditch."

"Trust me, I know how that is," Lily said as she rolled her eyes. Alice scanned her vision over the other people in the living room.

"Why are we waiting?"

"Remus." Alice nodded in understanding. Most of the Order of the Phoenix knew about Remus' condition, and everyone knew the full moon had just passed.

"I hope he's okay," Alice said sympathetically. Lily knew she was talking about Remus, but her mind drifted to another person. He had risked everything for her, and she had screamed at him. He just didn't understand. Yet, neither did she.

"Yeah," she whispered, "me too."

A few moments later, to much everyone's relief, Remus entered and sat down quickly.

"I'm so sorry to keep you all waiting," Remus said after everyone and sat down.

"It's fine, we are all here now," Dumbledore said, "But now that we are, we having pressing news to discuss. I have heard from a reliable source that the Death Eaters are coming after one of our own." At this many many people began talking at once, "Silence! This is important and you need to pay close attention. From what I have heard, Lily and James Potter's son, Harry, is in grave danger and we must protect him."

"No." Lily turned her head to see James shaking his own. "Albus that cannot be true." Dumbledore sighed and looked at James and Lily.

"I'm sorry, James, but my source is reliable. Lord Voldemort is coming after your son." Even though Lily had already heard that once before, now that Dumbledore said it out loud, she felt herself tear up.

"Wait," she heard from a voice in the corner of the room. Everyone turned their heads to see a small, odd looking man in the corner. Peter Pettigrew spoke again. "How do you know this source is reliable, Dumbledore? For all you know, someone could be giving you a false lead."

"Yeah," James said quickly, refusing to believe anything. "You never know Dumbledore." Lily moved her gaze anywhere but James. He was wrong and only she and Albus knew why.

"I'm positive, I'm sorry James." Albus replied.

"James, maybe we should just accept it and try and plan," Lily said softly next to him.

"How did you find this out? Who was your source?" Remus asked from a few people down. The room became silent in preparation for Dumbledore's answer. It had been the question on everyones mind. Dumbledore sighed and looked at all them with saddened eyes.  
"I cannot tell you. You must understand this is for their safety." The room erupted in noise. Lily couldn't stand it anymore.

"My son is in danger!" She shouted at the room, "The least you people could do is listen to the one man whom I trust to save his and our lives." The room stuttered to a silence, "Thank you."

The meeting continued on but Lily had trouble paying attention despite the fact that it dealt with her son. She was too preoccupied thinking about the fact that Sev had cared, cared enough to betray his 'master' for her son and family. But she knew in her heart that he had only done it for her. But he also had forgot about James and Harry. She wanted to think that he was just a selfish bastard, that he didn't care about anything that he didn't want, but she couldn't help but feel there was something else there. She wanted to accept him, but she still wanted to hate him. She just didn't know what to do.

"Lily?" James whispered next to her. She snapped back into reality.  
"Oh, sorry." she replied, straightening herself.  
"Dumbledore wants us to stay after and talk to us about protecting Harry."

"Alright." They both sat and waited while the rest of the Order filed out silently. Some tried to send sympathetic looks towards Lily, but she ignored them. Next to her, James reached out his hand and she grabbed it, graciously accepting the comfort.  
"Now Lily, James," Albus said softly, walking towards them, "I think I have the right plan for protecting your son."  
"We'll do anything," James said confidently.

"The Fidelius Charm." Lily looked at him, confused. Dumbledore saw her face and hurried to explain himself. "It's a highly complex spell allowing one's house to remain hidden from anyone but it's secret keeper. The secret keeper is the only one who can see the house and is the only one who can tell others of it's location."  
"So," James said, working it out in his head, "if we had this Fidelius Charm on our house, You Know Who wouldn't be able to find it?"

"And Harry would be safe," Lily finished.

"Exactly," Dumbledore said. "Now, I can arrange to come over and perform the charm tomorrow, making me your secret keeper." For some reason, Lily's insides started to twitch. She did not trust him.

"No." Dumbledore looked at her, confused. James did the same, but seeing the pleading in her eyes, started to shake his own head.  
"No, Albus. That would be very nice of you, but I think we'll have Sirius Black be our secret keeper." Lily's mind flushed with relief. She trusted Sirius with her life and she knew he would do nothing to harm James, Harry or herself.

"Are you sure?" Dumbledore said slowly, as if they weren't getting the point. "He would have your lives and the life of your only son in his hands." James squeezed Lily's hand in his and stood up.

"Yes, we are positive." Lily followed him up and they both started to move in the direction of the door. "Thank you for the warning Albus," James said.

"Of course." Said Albus with a knowing look to Lily that James didn't see. They all said their goodbyes and Lily and James disapparated back to their home.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**A/N The reviews were a little bit down this chapter :/. Hopefully it was just because James was there and nobody likes James. Otherwise, I don't know.**

**Also, WARNING: Both Bailey and I are in competitive marching band and we have our huge state competition this Saturday so we will try our very hardest to have the chapter ready for next Monday.**

**Amar2: Trust me, we hate him too. It was so incredibly hard to write him as a decent person last chapter.**

**Christine Dalen: You like reading Snape better, we like writing Snape better. I think we can work something out. :P**

**Abby0512x: Thanks for the follow!**

* * *

Severus read the letter again and again hoping to obtain some new information each time to put his mind a little more at ease but only succeeded in making himself more anxious. He paced around the room and picked up the letter once more.

_Severus,_

_I have fully informed them of what is happening and what is at stake and precautionary measures have been, indeed, taken. Kindly do not reply, I do not wish for either or us to appear suspicious. I would, however, wish to meet you at the same place in one weeks time to discuss important information._

_Albus_

Severus forced himself to set down the worn letter once more and try to calm down. He had a meeting with the Dark Lord and the rest of the Death Eaters in a few hours time and it would not do for him to appear so flustered and arouse suspicion.

He sat down in his musty, old velvet arm chair and began to think. He knew he would not receive any information for another week about anything relating to the Potters and it would not do him well to dwell on that fact for any longer. What he needed to do now was to think of a plan of how to re-convince the Dark Lord of his absolute loyalty and prove to him that he did not have anymore feelings for her. He needed to remain in the inner circle of the Death Eaters if he wished to remain helpful to Lily and her family. If he was not in the inner circle, Dumbledore and Lily would lose their spy and their safety, despite the precautionary measures mentioned in the letter.

Severus knew he was accomplished at occlumency, but so did the Dark Lord. He would have to take his convincing one step further than just stating his loyalty. Only one advantage came to his mind however, but it would have to do.

Lily was muggle-born, a fact known by the Dark Lord and therefore was Severus' protection. If he could convince the Dark Lord that he got over Lily Evans because she was unworthy of him, he had a chance.

Severus closed his eyes for a moment though. He hadn't said the word out loud since that fateful day but he knew if he was to fully convince the Dark Lord he would have to use it, and he only had a few hours to say it without cringing.

"Mudblood." He whispered to himself, "Lily Evans- Potter- is a m-mudblood." He hated himself for saying it even though he knew he had to and it was to save her life. And he still didn't believe it, not then and definitely not now. And he had to say the word today, convincingly. It was about time he made the right choice for her.

"Mudblood… mudblood… Lily Potter is a mudblood…"

Severus threw on his black robes and headed toward the door. On his way out he looked into the mirror that hung in the entryway and law how lifeless his black eyes looked and how sallow his skin was. He turned away though, he had minutes before the meeting started and could not be late. Not today.

He apparated at the end of the street and began to quickly walk towards Malfoy Manor. He walked purposefully through the gate and up to the front door.

"Good evening, Severus." Said Lucius when he opened the door for Severus' entrance to the manor.

"Lucius." Severus nodded back as he continued on into the dimly lit dining room where about a dozen people already sat in silence.

He took his seat and sat in silence with the rest, waiting for the meeting to begin. It was no different that any other meeting he had been a part of, but yet it was. Everything and nothing had changed. But he could not think about that, not now. Not when so much was at stake and not when he was sitting in a room with a man very learned in the art of legitimacy.

The last to enter, Avery and Dolohov, sat down and all the seats were filled. The door at the entrance of the dining room clicked shut and all heads turned to the man at the head of the table.

"My loyal followers, I have good news and bad news." The Dark Lord said to the room, "First, though, I would like to hear your reports. Bellatrix?"  
"My Lord," she began, "I have continued my watching of the Longbottoms as you commanded."

Severus was barely listening as she rattled off her report on the Longbottoms and received her praise which, from the look on her face, she desired more than anything in the world. She disgusted him.

Avery, Nott, and Karkaroff all gave their reports in time as well. All too soon it was time for the Dark Lord to tell them his news.

"As I said before, I have good news and bad news." He began, "I will start with the bad. The Order of the Phoenix, headed by Albus Dumbledore, has discovered our partial plans to destroy the young Potter boy and steps have been taken to keep him safe. However, I also said I have good news. I have acquired a spy who is an active member of the Order of the Phoenix. With his information, no matter what steps are taken to protect the boy we will know what they are. Currently, they are using a Fidelius Charm for his protection. I want everyone in this room to work at breaking it. That is all."

One by one, the Death Eaters, surprised at the abrupt ending of the meeting, hot up and left the dining room. Soon it was only the Lestranges, Malfoys, and Severus left, along with the Dark Lord.

"My Lord," Severus spoke in false confidence, "I crave a word with you if you would be gracious enough to allow it."  
"Of course, Severus," Voldemort said, motioning him to come forward. Severus took a deep breath before beginning to speak.

"I just wanted to inform you that I thought about what you said and I have decided that that Muggleborn is not worth my time." Voldemort looked at him, amused.

"What changed your mind?" It took all Severus had not to break. He knew he had to say it otherwise they would all die.  
"Lily Potter is a filthy mudblood." Voldemort laughed loudly, an eerie sound which sent shivers down Severus' spine.

"Well then we will do something to make sure you get a girl more worthy of our standards." Severus nodded convincingly and bowed slightly.

"Thank you, My Lord."  
"I'm glad you've finally come to your senses," Voldemort stated, almost proudly. "Once you see her and her son dead at our feet, you will know you made the right decision."  
"Indeed I will, I must get going however, thank you for you mercy." Severus said politely, fighting the urge to run away as fast as possible and shield Lily's house with his entire being.

As casually as he could Severus left the dining hall and manor and apparated back to his house. He was barely to the front door when his eyes began to sting. He closed the door and sat down at his rickety table, his body shaking though no tears escaped his eyes.

He hated them, all of them. How they thought and lived their lives repulsed him completely. He was never like that, even when he was loyal. He had always known his actions were not right, deep down. He could always here Lily's voice of reason in the back of his mind telling him right from wrong, it was she who had taught him any values to begin with.

But now, because of Lily, he could not leave. He had to protect her, to care for her as she had cared for him before he had so greatly disappointed her. He was ashamed, now, or his actions. He was determined to remedy them, no matter the cost to him. Lily was who mattered now, she was far more whole and pure than he had ever been and deserved a safe life, which he had the power to provide. He could not leave the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord's inner circle, no matter how much he desired to. He needed to stay. He had to fight him.

And save her.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

**A/N I feel bad saying this but we only write if people read and if we aren't getting reviews or feedback then I don't know how much we will write. But, just because we love those of you who do read, here is a happy chapter :).**

**Christine Dalen: A late review is still a good review :). And you basically got our goal spot on: we want this story to be long and interesting so people will just sit there and continue to read it. Maybe someday that will happen and with support from people like you, I know it's possible. Also, congratulations on your first state competition. You marched so well I am so proud of you. :)**

**Amar 2: When we decided to write this story, those thoughts were some of the first we had. Snape has always been an interesting character to us and his past is only ever explained briefly, so we are pretty much left in the dark. While this story may not match up perfectly with what happened in JK Rowling's version, it's still our "what if".**

**Sage Q: Thanks for the follow!**

* * *

Rain dripped off of the cold windows as the wind continued to blow harder and harder. This rain storm was the first of it's kind all season and Severus welcomed it with open arms. With weather like this, it allowed him time to be completely alone and think.

He knew it was torturing himself, but he took out Dumbledore's letter once more and read it over. Why hadn't Dumbledore told him the precautionary measures taken to save Li-the Potters? Was it because she still didn't trust him? While Severus was still in thought, a quick, angry nock beated on his door. He stood up swiftly-laying the note down on his side table- and went to open the door. Not a moment after he undid the lock, Lily stormed in.

"Didn't I tell you to stay out of this?" she yelled as she stormed her way inside.

"Lily?" Severus asked, taken aback by her presence. She hadn't been here in years. "What are you doing here?" Out of the corner of his eye he saw books left on the table and floor from where he had left them. Shit. He hadn't been expecting company.

"Did you really think I wasn't going to find out about you going to Dumbledore?"

"I, Lily, um-" he mumbled as he hurried over to pick up the books on the floor.

"Did you think that I couldn't handle this myself or something?" she asked, pacing the room. Severus opened his mouth to respond when she continued to talk. "I had a plan I was going to work things out but then you-you had to go to Dumbledore as if I wasn't responsible enough. I am married, I have a child, I think I am responsible enough to deal with my own issues," she exclaimed exasperatedly.

"Lily, that's not why I did it," he interjected. She stopped walking for the first time since she has arrived. Her face was red and flushed from yelling and she was panting slightly.

"Then why did you, Sev?" There it was again. Sev.

"Because," he started, rubbing his hand through his hair nervously like he used to as a boy.

"Because why?" Severus took a deep breath before continuing.

"Because when we were younger you protected me every day and I never was able to repay you." Lily was silent and the sound of the rain echoed louder than before. He sighed to himself and motioned for her to sit and she did:in the exact spot she did when they were kids. "Lily, you were the only one I told as a child about my father and how my parents fought and I haven't forgot about how you helped me. Without you, I don't know what I would have done or how I would have been able to cope with everything."

"It really wasn't that big of a deal, Sev," Lily countered, but Severus stopped her before she could say another word.

"Yes Lily, it was. And that's why I am going to do whatever it takes, whatever you need to keep you and your family safe." Lily looked him in the eyes for a moment and then looked around for the first time. Severus felt himself blush with shame at the mess in his house.

"Hey, what's this?" She rose up from her seat and grabbed the letter from Dumbledore. Severus rose up to grab it from her but he was too slow. He stood silently as she read the letter, her face growing solomon.

"What is Dumbledore making you do?" Severus' hands began to fidget at his sides. Lily noticed and she tucked pieces of her hair behind her ear in concentration. "I'm sure we can find a way for you not to do-"  
"No," he exclaimed loudly, startling her. "I mean, I want to help the Order." She nodded slowly and then looked at him again, but with a completely different look on her face that Severus could not place.

"What?"

"Something is different about you, Sev. I can't put my finger on it, but something is different than our last years of Hogwarts." For the first time in weeks, he smiled and to his relief, she smiled back. A silence fell over them, but Severus didn't even mind. Lily was at his house, talking to him and most importantly, she wasn't mad at him. He would do anything to keep that smile on her face.

"So, how is Harry?" Her smile broadened and he sat down across from her and silently cast a lumos spell to brighten the room.

"He is doing so well," she replied and then she started laughing to herself. "We bought him a toy broom and he will _not_ get off that thing."

"And," he hesitated slightly, not wanting to talk about him, but knowing he should. "And how is James?" Lily looked at him, surprise sprinkled on her face.

"He's doing wonderful, thank you for asking." Immediately, Severus knew that that had been the right question to ask. Her entire demeanor became even more comfortable than it had been before. "You know," she continued slowly, "I wonder if Harry would like to meet you." Wait, was that an invitation to see her again?

"I would like that very much," he said with a smile. Lily nodded and then stood up, Severus following her lead. "Well, it's getting very late and Harry and James are waiting for me."  
"Of course," he said, walking her towards the door. Once they reached the entrance way, the both stopped.

"Well, goodnight," he said. This would be the time where he should hug her. That's what friends were supposed to do.

"Goodnight." She smiled one last time before walking out the door and he closed the door softly behind her. When he turned around to look at his house, he found it much lighter and brighter than it had been an hour ago. Her mere presence had made his house shine.

"You should have just hugged her, you fool," he mumbled to himself. "No wonder you weren't in Gryffindor."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

**A/N Well here's another chapter as promised. Thank you SO MUCH for all the feedback! We appreciate it more than you know.**

**Amar 2: We love it when they are talking too. It just makes everything so much better.**

**Covered in Bruises: We appreciate any comments we get because it means you took the time to read our fanfic but we don't think you read it very carefully, we never said this story was going to be exactly like JK Rowlings version. Also, when has Snape ever believed that muggle borns were inferior and "should be destroyed"? I never remember reading about that in the books either. Lily has every right to be outraged at him being a part of the Death Eaters, but he was never happy being a Death Eater. I hope this cleared up some of your confusion.**

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* * *

Severus slipped into his black traveling cloak and stepped out the door where he proceeded to disapparate on the spot. He appeared on a familiar hillside where the Hogsmeade village could be viewed from a great distance. No one from the village would be able to see Severus though, and he took a great comfort in that. It would not do well for people to see his speaking with Albus Dumbledore, there would be consequences for the both of them if they were to be see, Severus knew that.

Still, it was a week since he had received the letter from the old man and he would not miss his one chance for information. He waited some-what patiently upon the hillside for his counter-part to arrive, only pacing a little bit. He was waiting, just waiting.

A loud pop made him jump and instantly grab his wand but upon expecting he discovered it was only Dumbledore, and he lowered his wand and cautiously approached him.

"You have information for me?" Severus asked, trying to hide the plea in his voice.

"Yes, I do." Replied Albus, and Severus waited, "You told Lily." This was not a question of Severus nor a source of information, and Severus became annoyed.

"Yes." He replied curtly.

"And yet you told me as well, curious, curious…" Dumbledore pondered.

"You said you had information, have you lied to me? Is this, instead, a meeting to question my actions and judgement?"

"Of course not, I do have information for you, though I don't know of how much interest it really will be of you."

"I want to know it anyways, I want to know everything, anything, you can tell me. I want to know what is going on. I have been in the dark for the past week in worry, not knowing what was happening and what was going on. I want to know everything."

Dumbledore took a moment, gave Severus a piercing look, and began again.

"Very well, I have information. So far I have informed no one of your… alliance with me, the Potters, and the Order of the Phoenix. I think it would be unwise to inform people of this because this is top secret and could easily become catastrophic if it were to come out. For all of us." Dumbledore began.

"There is a spy, Dumbledore, in the Order. And they have informed the Dark Lord of your measures of protection."

"Do you have any idea of whom it could be?" he questioned and Severus shook his head. "Well, make sure you find out.'

"Of course."

"Also, there is Potions job open at Hogwarts this year and I think it would be wise of you to take it. That way you would constantly be under my protection and your Master would think he had inside leads into our plans." Severus thought about that for a minute. The Dark Lord trusted him now more than ever. If he got a job at Hogwarts, his master would not question his loyalty even for a minute. He would be more free than ever to help Lily.

"I'll take it," Severus replied confidently. Dumbledore half smiled at him.

"Very well, I will make sure to owl you the information you will need to start the position in September." They both sat in silence for a moment before Severus got up the courage to ask.

"And...how are Lily, James and Harry?" he questioned. "Are they safe? Did the charm work?" He hadn't been called by Voldemort for an emergency meeting and none of the other Death Eaters had said anything, but he still had to ask.

"Yes, they are still safe, and I hope they will continue to be. And that's where you can help me. What I want for you in return for me protecting Lily, James, and Harry is you becoming a spy for us. I wish you to inform me of everything Voldemort tells you, and I will give you some true and semi-false information to make him believe you are working for him and only him. And no one must know. Not the Death Eaters or, for everyone's protection, anyone in the Order, including Lily."

"But sir," Severus started slowly. "The Dark Lord is the world's most powerful legitimist. How do you expect me to keep this from him?"

"Don't give him a reason to suspect you. But I do have a plan. If Voldemort should ever ask you where you are getting your information, you shall tell him that you have slowly gained my trust and have convinced me that you have changed sides. Your supply on information shall keep him less suspicious on the whole ordeal. Also, I cannot tell you anything that would be catastrophic if Voldemort found out, so I cannot give you all the information I have. In the company of your fellow Death Eaters, simply refer to me as the source you have discussed. That is how you will keep this from the most powerful legitimist in the world."

Severus had become worried. Of course, the plan made sense and in all probability would work, but Severus would have very few true allies. One to be exact. He would be safer at Hogwarts, safer from his old ways and accomplices, but he would have no ones complete trust if he agreed to this. Same if he disagreed.

And he couldn't tell Lily any of it.

He knew that was for his protection as much as his and also made perfect sense due to Dumbledore's undeniable logic. His new strategic position made him uneasy. But he couldn't refuse the new position. It was too important and he was the only man who could do it. And it would help save Lily, which had been his only concern lately.

Dumbledore had silently watched Severus as he wrestled with his choices, courage, logic, and loyalty. Severus looked straight into the old and wise man's expectant eyes and opened his mouth.

"I will do it. In return for you helping Lily and her family or not, I would do it either way. Just promise me that she will stay safe." Severus half pleaded with the old man.

"I promise."

And with those two words, a new relationship was formed between the two men as they strived for the same goals. With those two words, lines became blurred and broken.

Those two words changed everything.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**A/N This chapter would not have actually been written this week if it hadn't been for Bailey. Thank you!**

**Bienvenue a Bikini Bottom: We don't want to go and give away spoilers but we can say that you shouldn't really be worried.**

**Amar 2: Your review made us smile. We would love to take James, but we don't know if everyone else would kill us or not :P. No, but we can't tell you anything yet. You will just have to read on and see for yourself.**

**corpsmanup88: You stumped us with your question. We actually have no idea how many chapters we are aiming for. We have the general story planned out so I guess as long as it takes for everything to happen. Don't worry though, that won't be for awhile.**

**Christine Dalen: Thanks bro. And you're lucky we actually got this chapter posted with Mason and all. You have no idea *sobs pathetically*.**

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**We dedicate this chapter to Mason Alexander. Even though we got no sleep, we still loved you anyways.**

* * *

Severus never really realized how unattached he was to the few possessions in his house until he was packing up to leave his home. His teaching job at Hogwarts was to start the following day and Severus was quickly finishing packing up his few belongings he wished to take with him. He had told the Dark Lord of his new position a few days previous and so far his position in the middle of a war was going smoothly, he was not suspected for anything at all.

He had announced his accomplishment of receiving a job at the meeting where he had been congratulated by the Dark Lord and all the Death Eaters that were present. He was still very uneasy about the situation though, and was quite glad to have an excuse to not show up to meetings for a few months, not that any Death Eaters could know this though.

Severus was driving himself mad not trying to think about anything he wanted to think about because he shouldn't know the things he did, and no one could know what he knew. It was all very confusing and tiring and it would be a nice break to not have to watch himself so carefully.

He was also finding it increasingly difficult to maintain a straight, or even happy, face upon hearing about the deaths of members of the Order of the Phoenix. Just last meeting there was congratulations for several Death Eaters on their killing of Fabian and Gideon Prewett who were, from what Severus had heard, both excellent people and fighters. But he cheered with the rest and acted as if nothing had changed inside of him.

Even though everything had.

Severus was never quite sure really why he joined the Death Eaters in the first place. If he had to hazard a guess, however, he would say it would be for the feeling of family and control over the people who cruel to him. These were childish thoughts however, for he received neither of these benefits. The Dark Lord was the only one with power and control and being a Death Eater gave him no sense of family. In fact, it took away the one person who he considered family. Of course, it seemed as though things were beginning to become patched up between them...

Severus was pulled out of his revere by a tapping sound at his window. He quickly turned around to receive the owl and the letter tied around its leg. Already suspecting who it was from, Severus smiled as he took the letter off the birds leg and went to his table to sit down and read it.

Lately, he and Lily had become pen pals of sorts. She was unable to leave her house because of the Fidelius Charm that had been placed on her house and Severus could not visit her for the same reason. Also, he was not entirely sure that Lily had told James of the recently rekindled friendship between them and it would be odd if he began to visit her. Plus, it would be very dangerous for everyone.

They were talking again though, and that was all that really mattered to Severus. She had even sent the first letter of her own accord, to the great surprise of him considering the last conversation they had was, in Severus' opinion, a bit awkward. Perhaps she had become lonely or bored with no visitors or maybe she just really missed their past friendship, but whatever the reason, Severus was fine with it.

It had been about two weeks ago when the owl had first tapped on his window. Confused, we quickly went to the kitchen and took the own inside. He suspected it would be Dumbledore who sent the letter, he was the only one Severus ever wrote too, but the had been having their once a week meetings on top of the hilltop by Hogsmeade so he expected what ever the letter was about, it would be urgent.

It wasn't Dumbledore's hand writing that was on the letter, though it did look very familiar to Severus, but he had no idea why. He sat down at his table, opened the letter, and immediately looked at the signature at the bottom. Lily.

He had to reread that one name about seven times before it actually sunk in. It was Lily, and she wanted to talk to him, she sent him a letter without any incentive to do so. She really wanted to talk to him. He sat there happily for a little while before he realized he should probably read the letter.

_Severus,_

_I can't risk leaving my house to visit you again because it seems like things are getting very dangerous - well, more dangerous than they were before. I just thought that I owed you an apology. I shouldn't have yelled at you for telling Dumbledore about what you heard after you told me, you were only trying to do the right thing and use the knowledge you had to try and protect me and my family when it seemed like I wouldn't._

_I would have told Dumbledore, believe me I would have. I would have protected my family. But I wasn't sure if I could trust you and I was scared, I didn't know what to believe because it just came out of no where. So, what I'm trying to say is, I'm sorry._

_I also want to say thank you though, because it must have taken a lot of courage and bravery to tell me and Dumbledore what was going on because of everything that has been happening. You are not a coward._

_I will understand if you are still a bit mad at me for what I said to you but I just wanted to take the time to right some of my wrongs (partially because I have so much free time now that I'm not allowed to leave the house). I hope you are doing well._

_Lily_

Severus had read the letter three times to make sure he understood what she was saying. She was saying that she was sorry when he should have been the one to. He barely hesitated before he grabbed a piece of parchment, some ink, and a quill.

_Lily,_

_You needn't say that you are sorry when I should be the one saying so. It was a very out of the blue thing to say and I apologize for that and I apologize for going behind you back to Dumbledore but I really did have your best interests at heart and I wasn't sure if you had taken me seriously._

_I also apologize for saying that I only wanted to save you, it was out of order and I am sincerely sorry for that. I guess we both have some wrongs to right. I am doing well and I hope that you and your family are as well._

_Severus_

From then on, Severus and Lily slowly ventured back into the realm of being friends again through their frequent letters. Severus opened today's letter and read through it.

_Severus,_

_I hope you are well and excited for you new job tomorrow. Things are going fine here, thanks you for asking. I just put Harry down for his nap so I have some free time to write, you would be surprised how time consuming such a little person can be! I have to watch him every waking moment to make sure he doesn't get into to much trouble because he is getting pretty good at walking and is exploring everything._

_I don't have much more information from Dumbledore than you do but I have recently found out that Gideon and Fabian Prewett have been killed. Thinking about it still brings tears to my eyes, they were both such good people. I sent a letter of condolence to their sister, Molly Weasley, but I don't think it will help with anything. I'm feeling so helpless lately. James is worse though, he likes to be in the action so he is becoming a bit depressed not being able to do anything I think. It will all be worth it when its over I think though._

_On a happier note, Dumbledore has assured me that we have someone who is a very big help on our side. I hope that means that all of this is almost over. Make sure you tell me how your new job is going when you get the chance, I'm sure you will be very busy soon._

_Lily_

Severus smiled at her kind letter and put it with the rest of her letters, all of which he kept in a box. He placed the box by the things he would be bringing to Hogwarts and then, after glancing at the clock, began to get ready for bed. He fed the owl who delivered the letter a treat and sent it on its way back home.

If Severus had been paying closer attention though, he would have noticed that the bird's feathers were a bit ruffled, as if someone had forcefully grabbed the bird mid-flight.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

**A/N We hit 40 reviews! :D We would absolutely LOVE to hit 50 reviews next chapter if possible. It would honestly make us the two happiest people in the entire world.**

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* * *

Severus surveyed the house one last time. It would be another nine months before he had to come back, and he felt good about it. The last time he had left his house for this long was four years ago for his seventh and final year at Hogwarts.

It didn't feel like Severus was leaving his home though, it felt like he was returning to it. Hogwarts was the only place that had ever felt welcoming to him. It was with a smile that Severus grabbed hold of his trunk and floo powder and shouted, "Hogwarts!"

His house quickly zoomed away and the inside of Dumbledore's office filled his vision. He stepped out of the fireplace cautiously. He rarely had ever been inside the Headmasters office, with the exception of the instances with the Marauders in his earlier years at the school. Even though he was no longer a student, it still felt like he had done something wrong, so he quickly hurried down the stairs and out of the office.

Before he realized where his feet were taking him, a familiar room stood before him. Bright light streamed through the large windows as he slowly walked towards the middle of the Great Hall, passing many large, long tables. He stopped at a specific one and looked at it softly. There stood the same table he had sat at for hours upon hours. It was his table through every welcoming feast, regular feat, holiday: the Slytherin table. He sat down slowly and felt a rush of familiarity. Just four years ago he had sat here, a proud seventh year, and looked up at the Professors for another year. Without moving, he continued to sit as the sun started to shine brighter through the room.

"It feels like you belong there, doesn't it?" Severus turned his head to see Dumbledore standing in front of the head table, a slight smile on his face. Severus stood up at once.  
"I'm sorry, I didn't, I mean-" he stammered. Dumbledore waved his hand in dismissal.

"I wasn't criticizing, only understanding." He motioned for Severus to join him and he complied. "This," he motioned to the staff table and smiled, "is your home now." Dumbledore looked at Severus with a look mixed of seriousness and knowing. "Hogwarts is so much more than a school, Severus. Always remember that." He pulled a packet of paper out from his robes and Severus grabbed them without question. "Your class schedules and other basic information are in there and I would strongly advise reading and familiarizing yourself with them." He nodded at Severus and turned to walk away. "Just remember, Professor Snape, Voldemort expects you to be loyal to him and it would be wise of you to do so." Without another word, he strode out of the room, his footsteps echoing as he walked.

Severus watched him until he turned the corner to another part of the castle.

Severus looked over the papers and learned that his classroom would be in the dungeon. How queer, he thought, because he had never felt more free. He tucked the papers into his robes, grabbed his trunk, and headed to his new home.

The dungeons were dark and dreary and none of the candles on the wall were lit. Severus casually lit them with his wand as he passed by, causing shadows to dance all around him. His office, once he had arrived there, was empty except for a desk seated in one corner with a chair. Severus set his trunk in another corner and sat down at his desk. Severus pursued through the packet he was given again and found out that he had to be in the Great Hall in half an hour for the welcoming feast. While he waited, he sat and quickly memorized his schedule as Dumbledore had suggested and thought about how he was going to act towards his new students. If he was to portray a follower of the Dark Lord, he would have to favor the Slytherin house-which he didn't think would be too hard since he had come from there himself- and be unfair to almost everyone else. Even though he didn't really want to admit it, spending all that time with the Dark Lord probably helped in this area.

The half an hour passed quickly and soon he was on his way towards the Great Hall once more. Once he arrived, he smiled to himself. The Great Hall looked as magnificent as it always had when he had gone to Hogwarts. The candles floating among the tables, the golden plates and the ceiling that was enchanted to look like the sky all welcomed him and created a warm atmosphere.

Not a moment later, Dumbledore walked passed him, calling to Severus over his shoulder. "The children have arrived, it's time to sit at the staff table." Severus followed Dumbledore and the rest of the teachers to the staff table. When they were all seated, two places remained empty. Severus assumed they would be taken by Professor McGonagall, the Transfiguration professor who helped with first year sortings, and Rubeus Hagrid, the Keeper of Keys at Hogwarts who conducted the boats the first years took across the Black Lake to the Hogwarts Castle.

The teachers that were seated however were, apparently, finding it difficult to refrain from pointing at Severus and hiding their shock that he of all people was hired by Dumbledore. It was well know that he had been big about the Dark Arts among the teachers, considering he had been taught by most of them a few short years ago. Severus did his best to ignore the less than welcoming reaction, it was no more than he had expected, and he instead directed his attention towards the entrance to the Great Hall as he waited for the students to enter.

The doors opened almost immediately and the sound of hundreds of children all talking at once filled the Great Hall at once. The tables gradually filled up with the older students who were all joking and laughing together. With a shock Severus discovered he already knew some of them from when he had still been a student, and the realization was quite odd.

Finally it seemed everyone had entered the Great Hall and Hagrid and taken his seat at the staff table. The doors opened again and in came the first years lead by Professor McGonagall who was carrying a stool and a hat, both of which brought good memories to Severus who then smiled. As usually, the sorting hat sang it's song for that year about the different houses and their attributes. When it had finished, the sorting began with McGonagall calling out, "Ashers, Emily!"

One by one the nervous and anxious first years were sorted until "Zanburry, Keith" became the last Slytherin and the stool and hat were taken away. Dumbledore then stood up and waved his hands.

"There will be time for talking later, but for now," he waved his wand and smiled merrily, "dig in!" The once empty plates in front of everyone suddenly filled with many different types of extravagant food and everyone began filling their individual plates at once. Severus filled his plate many times, grateful that he wouldn't have to eat his own cooking all year again. He wasn't bad at cooking, but he was no where near as good as the house elves at Hogwarts. Less than an hour later, everyone sat back in their chairs,full and satisfied. Dumbledore took this as his cue to start and he stood up, the room becoming silent as he did.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another magical year of school at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As usual, I must give a few notices before we begin. Mr. Filch has once again asked me to tell you his list of forbidden objects in the castle. If anyone wishes to view the full list of some four hundred objects, it will be posted in Mr. Filch's office. Also, I would like to remind all students, new and old, that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all students. As is customary, if students in their third year and above, who also have their signed permission slip, will be allowed to make the trip to the village of Hogsmeade." He paused for a moment and Severus watched the third years give each other excited glances.

"Now, this year we have three new additions to our staff. First, I would like to introduce Professor Trelawney who will be taking over the post of Divination this year." Dumbledore then paused again to allow students to clap before he continued, "Second, replacing Professor Slughorn this year for Potions will be Professor Snape, who will also be taking over post as Head of Slytherin House." They wasn't as much applause this time, except for at the Slytherin table, but Dumbledore pretended not to notice and merrily continued on. "Finally, Our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, who will be replacing Professor Merrythought, is Professor Tenebrosis. Good luck to all of you this year."

"Quidditch tryouts will take place when organized by our newly appointed Captains, so if you wish to try out please give your name to your Head of House. Schedules for this coming year will be handed out at breakfast tomorrow, as most of you know, so that wraps up my speech for tonight. You all have warm beds to enjoy so go enjoy them. That is all." The students all got up almost as one and began to make their way to their dorms while the new Prefects attempted to restore order to the chaos of children. Slowly, everyone made their way out the door and in the right direction. The teachers then began getting up and wishing good night to their fellow educators as they too made their way to their beds.

Severus stood with the rest and began his way back down to the dungeons. He past the Slytherin dormitory entrance on his way and smiled. Once in his sleeping quarters right off his office, he quickly got ready for bed. He debated for a short amount of time whether or not he should respond to Lily's letter yet, but decided not to because he did not have much to tell quite yet. With a flick of his wand he put out the lights in the room. He then closed his eyes, feeling safe in the dungeon and very much at home.

* * *

In a much darker building, Bellatrix Lestrange passed outside a large, wooden door, her robes bellowing behind her. She was waiting to talk to her master about a very important topic. She knew something wasn't right and she was going to prove it.

"Come in," she heard and immediately strided over and pushed her palms into the door.

"My Lord, I come on an important matter," she exclaimed. Voldemort looked at her, amused for a second before his snakelike face returned to its emotionless state.

"What is it, Bellatrix?" he questioned as he motioned for her to sit. She declined his offer and began pacing the lengths of the extravagant dining table.

"My Lord, I think there is a spy among us," she stated quickly. "I think someone is unloyal to your powerful rule." Voldemort looked into her eyes and stood up silently, the heavy sound of Bellatrix's breath the only sound in the room. She stopped pacing at once and stood perfectly still as her master walked slowly towards her, his eyes both curious and filled with anger. When he reached her, her breath stopped and she waited.

"Who." Not a question: a demand.

"Severus Snape," she breathed softly. Voldemort took two steps back, looked at her once more, and started to laugh.

"My Lord!" she exclaimed, enraged at his mockery. "Snape is a lying piece of filth who cares more about Mudbloods than your power! He will damn us all!" Her fists clenched in rage as Voldemort continued to laugh, the sound ringing off the walls.

"Severus Snape is as much of a traitor as you are Bellatrix," he replied, amused at the whole conversation.

"But how do you know?" she wailed, desperate for him to understand her. "Snape has always been a powerful Legitimist." Voldemort stopped laughing immediately.  
"Are you questioning my power, Bellatrix?" he asked slowly. She froze, realizing her mistake.

"I-I mean, he's not nearly as powerful as-"  
"Silence," he hissed and she whimpered softly. He circled around her and tapped his palm on his wrist. "I'm disappointed in you."  
"But Master-"

"Get out." Without another word, she hurried out quickly. Instead of feeling angry that her master didn't believe her , she was filled with determination.

"I will discover what you are doing, Severus Snape. And when I do," she paused, a wicked grin spreading though her face, "you will die."

Her laughter echoed off the walls as she walked out the door and further into the darkness.


End file.
